BowSong:The diary of the Star Archer
by StarArcher
Summary: The story of the Star Archer and his misadventures with the Senshi. PG-13 for language and violence. What kind of a Sailor Moon fic would it be without a fight or two, ne?
1. Greetings and Hallucinations

BowSong: Diary of the Star Archer Part 1  
  
My name is Gary. Gary Usar. I am, or rather, was, an average American teen. Well, a little   
larger than average, but who's keeping track? 6'3, 180 lbs, black hair, and here's my oddity: red   
eyes. I always was better at dealing with girls than guys. Maybe that was what brought me to what   
my life is like now. I suppose I should explain.  
  
My life was normal: School, friends, relationships, typical 14 year old life, right? Well, not   
after one day. Oh dear goddess, it is so painful to remember! I was at school when it happened.... it   
was like this:  
  
t was a typical day, a Thursday. nothing special about it, or so it seemed. My dad, as usual,   
forgot his suitcase at home, so my mom had to scramble to get it to him at work. She was in his   
office, and it all happened so fast! There was a bomb in the room! Some madman had planted a   
bomb in my dad's office! They had no chance, either of them! they were the first that day, the first   
ones to die. Their deaths were painless, and fast. My suffering was slow and very painful. Rather   
than be placed in an orphanage, I took the money left behind by my parents, sold everything, and   
moved to Japan. That is when it all went to pot.  
  
It has been almost two years since my parent's sudden death. Almost to the anniversary of   
the second year, and it gets hard. My life has rarely been normal, but now it is just plain hard. That   
day, I planned to join my parents. But fate had another thing coming for me. I was walking home   
from school that day, when I should chance upon this scene: three thugs afrom school armed,   
dangerous, and attacking some defenseless little girl, probably about twelve years old.  
Possibly to rape her, they never got the chance to follow through with their plans. I remember the   
scene well. It was like this:  
  
  
"Okay, you little brat, scream and die. It's that simple! Got it?"  
  
"Please, don't hurt me! I don't have anything you want! Go away, please!"  
  
He swung the knife in his hands. At an unarmed girl. I have always upheld the codes of   
Chivalry. This broke just about all of them. I had to help! I snuck up on one of the three bullies   
and knocked him one on the head. He dropped like a bad habit, offering his bat for my use. It was   
surprisingly like a sword, I realized. The second guy, hearing his friend's head bounce off the   
concrete, turned to see me. Then he didn't see anything as he hit the ground unconcious. The other   
guy turned and let go of the girl, who stood there, petrified with fear.   
  
"Who the hell are you, Mister Goody Two-Shoes? Well, mister whoever-you-are, prepare  
to die!" This guy meant business, especially when he knocked the bat from my hand. His knife   
swung wildly, and I swear I was going to die then, when a red-tailed hawk came from nowhere,   
gouging into the guy's face, and causing him to run away, screaming. The girl did likewise.  
  
The bird was unusual, not because I had never seen a red-tailed hawk in this area, but   
because of the... the star on his forehead. And then, I swear I had lost it when I heard it talk!  
  
"Well, are you gonna just stand there, or are you gonna introduce yourself?"  
  
"Uhhh, my name is Gary. Gary Usar."  
  
Well, Gary, you just saved some little girl's life. I think you're the guy I'm looking for. I'm   
Exor, your guardian. And you are the Star Archer, marksman of the guard, captain of the archers   
of the Lunar kingdom. And, might I mention, formerly of the Star Court."  
  
I was dumbfounded. "Say what?! What the hell was in my lunch today? I'd swear I'm hearing  
a KFC reject speaking to me! Jeez, I got hit hard by... that...bombing" I barely got the last sentence   
out, before bursting into tears. Someone then came to investigate the screans from earlier. It was the   
little girl, with the first available help she could find. My friend Usagi.  
  
"Gary! What happened here? This little girl was running away screaming about some thugs,   
and I catch you here? Gary, what happened?!"  
  
I couldn't stand there. I had brought the memories back there, at that spot, and I had to   
leave it, like I had when I left America. I ran. To where, I did not know until I got there. My legs   
had carried me to a place I would feel safe at... the Cherry Hill Temple.  
  
I had run top speed nonstop, and when I got there, I collapsed. There was no way I knew   
where I'd be, so I figured that no one would find me here.I was wrong. Someone did.  
  
I did not know her name, but I saw a face to make the angels jealous. She had hair,   
black as the wings of the crows which sat on the temple's sign. Her eyes, deep and wonderful, like   
two priceless gems. And her aura, there was something about it... something knowing. "Hey, weird   
kid, what brings you to the Temple today?" Her voice, to my ears, was like a gentle chorus of   
songbirds, pleasant to the ears. Normally, I can always find my words around girls, but this one had   
left me dumbfounded. "Uhhh, I needed someplace to retreat to, to comfort myself." She spoke again,  
and again left me dumbed by that lulling voice. "Well then, come in. Just don't break anything! Chad!  
Show this guy around, would ya?" I knew then I had found the girl I would love and protect.   
Just not how to have the feeling returned.   
  
"Okay, miss Rei. I can do that!"   
  
"Just don't sing, alright?!"  
  
I found the temple interesting. No one would tell me about any of the broken things, so I   
investigated them myself. They looked as if they were blasted apart! But by what...? All of a sudden,   
I knew. The hawk, the Senshi I had seen on the news for the past 2 years, all of it! It was all true,   
and I knew how I fit into it. Fate has an odd means of taking you where it wants you to be,   
somnetimes.  
  
I went back. Back to the alley, and back to the memories. I faced them without pain, for   
once. I had to, to become that which I did not yet understand! What's a guy to do, huh?  
  
I get there and Usagi is still there, trying to calm the girl down. She's scared of the hawk.   
"Don't worry about this, it's just a big robin. Wanna pet it?" I said gently, trying not to be in serious   
trouble with the flying Crispy Strips. That will change, later, when we are friends. I hold out my arm,   
and the bird perches on it calmly. Boy am I glad my dad made me take falconry classes! The girl   
finally calms down enough to go home, with a 'Watch out next time, okay?' to keep her safe on her   
way home.   
  
"Gary, why did you run away?"   
  
"I... I brought back a bad memory, and needed to distance myself from it. That's all."   
  
A scream rings out, piercing the pause between the two of us.   
  
"Gary, stay here. I'll go see what it is."   
  
When Usagi finally leaves, Exor talks to me again.   
  
"Now, are ya gonna bolt this time, or are ya gonna hear me out. You are the..."   
  
"The Star Archer. I had a dream about something like that. And you mentioned it already.   
But now, now I believe!" I had to. The evidence overwhelmed me!   
  
"Good. Now, you need to take these." 'These' were a leather-bound book and a sparkling   
golden ring, with a tear-shaped emerald of perfect quality set inside it. "Hide the book and wear the   
ring. And take me home, would ya?"  
  
I get home, bird, book, and ring in tow. I'm sitting in my room, when Exor breaks the silence.   
  
"Well, are you gonna transform and help the scouts, or what?!"   
  
"Transform? What the blazes do you mean?"   
  
"Simple. To don the armor of the Star Archer, you imbecile. That's what I mean."   
  
"How do I do that?"  
  
"Even easier. Just shout 'Star Tear Power!' and hold the ring to your eye. your body will   
motion correctly, as the secret's buried in your subconcious."  
  
I hold the ring up to my eye.   
  
"Star Tear POWER!!!"   
  
I shout to no one, but something hears me.   
  
It's hard to describe, it happens so fast. First, I feel the weight of a cape fall from my   
shoulders, muffled against the ground. I wrap myself in it, then throw it aside. Now, i'm in the center   
of the room, in a black suit where I have no armor, Golden boots, with wicked blades on the knee   
pieces, a platemail torso piece, silver wristbands, and golden gauntlets. All in all, it looks cool as hell.  
Then the helmet appears. It is golden, with dragon wings on the sides. They seem to stand up,   
and look capable of cutting someone. I'll keep that one in mind. I hold up my left hand, and a golden   
bow appears. it's spiked on the end, and as tall as I am. And that's pretty big. But something doesn't   
seem right. I reach over my shoulder, and catch a handle that's not there. I grab it, and my bow shifts  
to a crossbow. It also has now disappeared. My hand pulls out... a sword! A very nice sword,   
big but light as a feather.   
  
"Now, Star Archer, you are ready!"  
  
"Ready for what?" My brain was in overdrive trying to figure this out. Now I know how my   
friend Ami feels after those Advanced Calculus tests.  
  
"To aid the Senshi in their quest, to protect the world from evil."  
  
"Goddess help us all," I mutter to myself.  
  
It's been about a week since I first learned about the Star Archer's existance. That book that   
Exor gave me turned out to be the explanation of all of this, as written by my past self. Goddess, this   
is confusing. I've always believed in the power of the stars, but this is just ridiculous. Me, your   
typical sit-on-their-butt-watching-TV kind of teenager, and I am being powered by my patron stars   
to help fight an invading evil alongside a bunch of girls in sailor outfits. Can someone tell me how it   
gets worse? Oh wait, I can do that. I missed that whole week of school practicing as the Archer.   
I was in for it when I got back to school. But then again, I remember that day, too. It was sort of   
like this:  
  
"Gary! Where have you been the past week?!"  
  
"My apologies, Sensei. I have had some family problems, and..."  
  
"Family problems? Oh wait, the two-year mark was during last week, wasn't it?"  
  
"Yes, Sensei."  
  
"Fine. Excused."  
  
That was the end of it. I couldn't believe it! I thought I was gonna get reamed! Vegas   
probably couldn't have put better odds on it! Oh well, back to the TV, or so I thought. Just as I get   
settled down to watching some good old U.S. cartoons (Tom and Jerry, you gotta love them!), I get   
good old Flying Turkey in to interrupt with a call to the Archer's action. There comes a time in every   
man's life when... well I can see I'm boring you with that. So let's just cut to what happened next,   
shall we?  
  
I finally arrive on the scene, and finish transforming. Wow it's an interesting run from halfway   
across town. Now I see how the Senshi fit into their fukus so easily. Heh heh heh. Just kidding.   
I finally see the creature i'm supposed to fight, and Goddess, is it ugly! It looked like some sort of   
beetle after a leisurely stroll through a nuclear reactor. The worst part is, I just had to make an   
entrance. I think it went a little something like this.   
  
"Hey, Shellface, try hitting a guy. You'll find chivalry likes it a whole lot more"  
  
That got the very rude reply of "And who the hell are you?"  
  
"By the power of the Star Court, I am the Star Archer, and I am here to vanquish all things   
evil, ugly, smelly, and supid. Oh hey, you fit the bill perfectly."  
  
"Hey, Bow-boy, go find Robin Hood to practice your shooting. I'm way outta your league!"  
  
And this is the point where Sailor Moon and company finally decided to show up.  
  
"I... hey wait who are you?"  
  
"The Star Archer. I'll explain later. We've got work to do now," I say while pointing at old   
Jawhead with my sword.  
  
"Right. Are you a friend or an enemy?"  
  
"I said I'll explain later. I will. Right now, We Have WORK!" I say, pointing again at the   
ugly thing advancing on us.  
  
"Oh. This should be easy. Moon Scepter Elimi..."  
  
She didn't get the rest of the word out before getting snatched up by the thing's jaws. The   
Scepter went flying, and I somehow managed to catch the thing.  
  
"Sailor Moon! Activate the scepter!"  
  
"I did! It's activated! It won't fire unless I finish the activation though!"  
  
"Then I'll just fire it myself! Here goes..."  
  
I put the scepter to my bow and pull back. With a faint whisper from the string, it fires,   
arrow and scepter combined. It streaked across the battlefield and manages to blaze right through   
the creature, destroying it instantly. Sailor Moon drops to the ground with an unceremonious 'thud'.   
I start figuring 'Goddess help us all. Now I get to explain to the Senshi who I am.  
  
End of Part 1  
  
Disclaimer: The only characters I own in here are Gary and Exor. Later on I may use my brother's   
character and my g/f's character (with permission, of course!). For now, though, let me just say this.   
Everyone else in the story belongs to the very muse of creativity who is Naoko Takeuchi (Goddess  
bless her for all this), and that I would also like to thank my g/f for making me get off the TV and   
write this! Tankoo!  



	2. And it all Ends With a Big 'Kaboom'

BowSong: Diary of the Star Archer part 2  
  
"The Senshi are gonna skin me alive and use me as a rug," screams one part of my mind. Another puts it simply, "He's right, you know." I figure that I'm screwed either way, so why not just do it and get it over with?  
  
"I am the Star Archer, captain of your royal guards, Princess Serenity. I am a friend from the past, now returned to aid you again." With all of this, I snap to attention and offer a crisp blade salute. I'm thinking, "Why me, Goddess? Why always me?" If only I knew...  
  
"Hey, what little I can see of you looks farmiliar. Who... are you," asks Usagi. "I'm not so very sure of that myself, Usagi," I whisper into her ear. This, of course, causes her to fly to her feet. "How do you know who I am? Who are you? What do you want?"  
  
"It's me, Gary," I say as I lift the visor on my helmet. "And as for what I want, I want to know what the HELL is going on here!" The KFC reject, of course, chooses this time to perch on my shoulderplates. "Didn't you read that book? That DOES explain everything, you know. And if it isn't so very confusing to you, would you mind turning around? There's some other people that would like to meet you. Very much like to meet you."  
  
My mind screams "This bodes not well..." My instincts tell me to spin and defend. So, I do just that. With a flourish of cloak and bow, I'm in a crouched defense and facing away from Usagi. And with not a moment to spare. The vanquished youma's friend had just begun a charge. "Great. How does me, with a bloody bow, defend against a charge?" And the answer hit me like a fist. Oh wait, that WAS a fist. Too late, I remembered how to call forth my other weapon, the StarBlade.  
  
The youma was viscious. It punched like a wrecking ball. Once I had blade out, however, the battle was close to even. The odds shifted to my side. I like those odds. A quick slash and thrust, and I thought it would be over for the youma. I was wrong. "Maybe some of the special attacks from that book..." my mind was saying. Wait a second. Did I even remember any of them? That book never really specified anything. "Buddy, you are in serious, DEEP trouble," was the response from my mind.  
  
"Trouble? I work BEST when in trouble! Leave it to me," was my verbal reply. The other Senshi just gave me a death look of 'Is this guy all there upstairs?' My answer to this day remains: Heck no!!!  
  
"Focus. Bring all your power to your mind, then your blade," I keep telling myself, in preparation for the ONE attack that I know well, and can remember. "When it's all in the sword, channel it throughout, and your voice, the catalyst. Set it off."  
  
"Buddy, you are SO screwed!" The youma ceases pummeling me fot just that instant I needed while it laughs at me. "Big mistake, you poor sap," was all that ran through my mind. With that, in a voice that could rumble the very Stars of Fate themselves, I call out to the power in the blade.   
  
"Starlight... EXPLOSION!!!!"  
  
The blade seems to come alive in grounding all of that energy. Only then do I realize that I put more in than I had. "This one's gonna hurt. A LOT," I scold myself. "Oh well, too late for that." The energy traced a pentagram of light, which seems to rise up, the circle surrounding the points containing an explosion of force to rival the energy of a Red Giant going nova. In controlling this, I spent the last of my energy. With the dispelling of the explosive force, my armor fell away, as I dropped towards the ground, spiralling into unconciousness...  
  
  
A/N: The Star Archer is my character, as is the KFC reject(Exor, the red-tailed hawk guardian). The youma is also mine. The Senshi, and Sailor Moon, all belong to Naoko Takeuchi. I've changed it back to the Japanese names, simply cuz the dub sucks. (Haruka and Michiru as cousins? WTF are they thinking?!?! Incest...ewww.)  
Please R/R, and just remember:  
'Sticks and stones may break my bones, but toy with Flames, and you'll get burnt =P'  
More to come, and the Zodiac Scouts (authoress Tes-sama's creation) and Rift (My bro's creation) to follow with. Plus, an appearance by a villain of my creation (You'll like him, simply to hate him more...) 


	3. Remebrances

BowSong: Diary of the Star Archer part 3  
  
After the explosion, I remember falling. I remember hitting the ground in a dead heap. From there, I don't remember anything about what happened for awhile. But, I do remember waking up. Oh yes, I remember waking up quite well. It went a little something like this...  
I had woken up. This wasn't so atypical. I sat up. The usual reaction to waking up, right? I start to wince in pain. This is the point where it gets weird, twisted, and is the reason I remember it so well.  
I looked around me, expecting to see... actually, I wasn't even expecting to wake up. I looked around, discovering I was in someone's bedroom. Here's what it looked like, as I saw it.  
This someone obviously liked candles. Yes, very much so, as every possible place to put a candle held a candle. I could see no fixtures for a light of any sort. I looked in one direction, and saw a very big window. In fact, most of the wall was the window. The exception to this was a window seat, maybe two feet off of the ground. I could see books. Lots of books. Didn't pay attention to what the books were, but I know they were there. The bed was against one wall of the room, and there was a door on my right, although well hidden. There was a walk-in closet. The walls themselves, excepting the window, were a deep blue, almost a black look. There was a deep purple spattering on them that made me think someone shot the place up with a paintball gun.  
After learning the general layout of the room, I finally manage to pull myself out of bed and over to a mirror. After a few tries, a lot of cursing, and a great deal of pain, I was standing in front of a mirror, assesing the damage. I looked myself in the mirror, only now realizing my armor is nowhere in sight. This wouldn't be bad, except that I was in a pair of shorts in a complete stranger's room. That, and wrapped in enough bandages to make King Tut jealous. I hear the door open. Looking in the mirror, I notice a girl walk into the room. Turning around, I attempt to remain calm as I speak. "Where am I," I began with. "Who are you? What am I doing here? And where in the hell is my armor?" At this point is when I realize how wrong this all sounded. 'You stupid idiot,' is the only response my mind gives me.  
The girl responded. "My name is Sylvia Staford. You're in my room. You were here resting, as I don't know where you live, but you were badly hurt. And, as for your armor, Star Archer, it disappeared after I brought you here." Now my brain was worked up into a frenzy. 'How does she know who you are? YOU don't even know fully! What is going on here, and just how many people are involved?' It seemed to me that she read my very thoughts.   
"Don't worry, Star Archer. I am an ally. There are more of us than you might think. Your injuries will be healed very soon, perhaps by tomorrow you will be able to find the senshi under the direction of the Moon Princess. I will leave you now to sleep." With that, she left the room. I wasn't tired, but all of a sudden, sleep sounded like such a good suggestion.  
With thoughts of seeking Serena and the others, to maybe find an explanation running through my head, I slept. And I dreamed. I dreamed of my role in that last fateful battle of the Star Court.  
I was in armor. It wasn't the Archer's armor, no, it was different. It was hazy, though. All I knew was that I was running after someone. One word surfaced, exploded into reality. "Traitor!!" I was chasing a traitor. A betrayer. _The_ betrayer of the Queen, the Princess, of everyone in the Court! I follow him, into the throne room, only to realize that I wasn't alone with him. There _was_ someone there. My Princess, the one I knew I was to protect. Dead, and lain about as if it her death was a ritual sacrifice. I felt an incredible power drain from me, and was suddenly the Archer again. The last thing I remember was charging at the traitor, shouting at him. He turned around, and I knew him at once. He looked smug, as of a sense of finality. He knew what was coming, as my sword drove home through what _should_ have vitals. He grinned, drew me close, and I saw his face! I know that face, from this life! I felt the power of my own sacrifice, the forefeit of my own life to destroy the traitor. But his face! It haunted me then, at death, and haunts me now, even as I bolted awake, screaming.   
That face belonged to my cousin, Edward. 


	4. A Meeting of the Minds and Powers

BowSong: Diary of the Star Archer part 4  
  
I screamed. I screamed for a long time. Then, I screamed some more. After I finished screaming, I caught my breath and screamed again.  
By this time, my screaming drew some people's attention. When I finished screaming, I looked at the door. That was a rather comical sight, for there was 3 girls, of varying heights, wedged in the door. One other thing I noticed is that Birdbrain must've followed me here, because he came flying over their heads and into the room.  
"Gary, what's wrong? What happened?" This from good old Crispy Strips.  
At this, the three girls managed to unwedge themselves from the doorway. The one who was in here earlier, Sylvia, was the first to speak. But, they all said pretty much the same. There's only so many different ways to say 'what happened?'  
"Nothing much, I just think I had a bad dream. I don't even remember it." This was a bald-faced lie. Edward, my cousin, his face now forever burned into my head.  
"You can tell us what you will. We will know the truth eventually, Star Archer." This was from the tallest of the three. I stand up, feeling much better than the day before, and start to walk out of the room.  
"Think what you will, I'm outta here." I start to walk out of the door.  
"Aren't we just a little underdressed for that occasion?" Sylvia mutters, innocently.  
I look down. All the more clothing I'm wearing is a pair of pants that have been rendered to shorts. Seeing cloth that looks like my shirt, I grab it and put it on. This is when I see the tatters that my favorite shirt was reduced to. This irked me. Holding up the shirt, I muttered "And I liked this shirt, too..." I give it a gentle tug, and it rips cleanly off again. I uncerimoniously dump it into the trash can.  
One of the girls, laughing at this, said something. It was incomprehensible to me, as I was muttering darkly to myself. "What was that?" I asked, since I missed what she said.  
"I have a shirt that might fit you. You mind black?"  
Looking at my pants... err, shorts, which are black, I responded simply "I hope so, or I masde a terrible mistake with these shorts."  
As I said this, I was thrown a black t-shirt, with an interesting pattern of a dark gray drawn on a black base color. It was interesting, as it had the different zodiac signs on it.  
'Cool,' I thought to myself. 'I'll have to return this.' Feeling bold, I asked something I probably should have before. "Now, how do I get home?"  
The tall one, I believe her name was Nameikou, offered to drive me home. I wasn't going to turn this down. I got into the car, and was driven off.  
When the car stopped, and I got out, I realized this wasn't home. But, I thought I could ask directions. I climbed the steps I saw in front of me, and heard people talking at the top.  
"We don't know if this Star Archer, or whatever he calls himself, is friend or foe. That makes him dangerous. We should keep our distance from him..." They were talking about me. Looking from the bushes, I saw it was Serena and her friends. I recognized people from pictures in Birdo's book. The one who spoke was Sailor Mars.  
Calling from the shadows, throwing my voice, I responded. "Sailor Mars, mistress of fire, you should be wary of mistrusting allies. Often, it can prove a problem."  
All of the ladies jumped. Yes, it was fun to scare them. It was also too easy.  
Usagi had the sense to call out "Who's there?!" as she jumped.  
"Funny you should have to ask, your friend here just spoke of me." With this, I walked out of a shadow, unnoticed, until I was centered in the group.  
"Gary! You're the Star Archer?" Usagi looked more confused than normal.  
As soon as introductions were completed, I saw a girl, with flame red hair, and blue-green eyes, albeit she was shorter than me by almost half a foot. She saw me, and stormed up to the group.  
""Nice move Usagi. I let you start one meeting by yourself and you already have a visitor. I think you beat my bet. How long's he been here? Anyone clock it?" As soon as she spoke, I thought I recognized her from school.  
"I'm part of the group, albeit a new addition to the ranks. I'm the Star Archer, alias Gary Usar. And you are...?" I say this, offering my hand.  
"Mitaiyoko Helio," she responds coldly, not returning my handshake.  
"Well, aren't we the friendly type. I've explained why I'm here, now, would you care to explain YOUR presence?" I started feeling a little odd right after this.  
"I'm Sailor Sun, leader of the Zodiac scouts, and I'm rather upset at that bakabrained Moon princess for letting someone like YOU into her group."  
"Hey! That's not nice. I'm supposed to be her guardian." I retort, while silently agreeing with her. Then, I start to feel really odd. Looking down, I find myself floating a good foot in the air!  
"For a guardian, you're pretty lousy. Shouldn't you want to keep your feet on the ground?"  
"You honestly think I'm TRYING to float here?" As I rotate upside down. And suddenly, I drop to the ground, facefirst.  
"No, not really," she says with a smirk. "And isn't that Natalie's shirt?"  
"Oh, so you know them too, eh? They helped me recover from the last attack. I got hit hard, and it shredded my shirt, so she loaned me this one."  
"Right. Like I believe you."  
At this time, someone comes running up to the group, saying something about an attack in southern Tokyo. I take off running, to get there as soon as possible. All I hear is a previously unseen enemy is there, wreaking massive havoc. Before I hear any more, I run off, down the steps, and straight to home to get some things.  
  
A/N: Usual disclaimers apply. I own none of the scouts, they are property of Naoko Takeuchi. I don't own Sailor Sun, or the zodiacs. They belong to my girlfriend. I do own Gary, however, and a few others who may make an appearance are mine or accredited to me. Anyways, sayonara until next time, no clue when that will be.  
  
Ciao,   
~GryffindorArcher  



	5. Enter Villain, Stage Left

BowSong: The diary of the Star Archer part 5  
  
As soon as I got home, the spiffy shirt came off, and went flying into a clothes hamper. With a mental note to wash that, I grabbed the nearest junk shirt I had and ran out the door. As soon as I do this, I realize the battle is on the opposite side of town. I needed speed. I turned to the only possible means of getting that, my motorcycle.  
  
Mounting my familiar black bike, I take off, at a speed that would have made my racing partner, Haruka, envious. As I'm driving, I take my right hand off of the handlebars, and grip my hand into a tight fist. Sensing the power radiating from the emerald, I feel my body grow heavy with armor as I mutter 'Star Tear Power.'  
  
Suddenly, I see a large explosion, and realize where the battle is. It's below me. With a silent prayer offered up to the stars, I drive my bike off the side and into a jump. It goes one way, I go the other. Luckily, I landed on my feet. I looked around, seeing the scouts scattered, all of them fighting a small group of creatures. I summon my sword and go for the nearest one.  
  
With a leap and slash, the first to fight me falls. As I begin to call forth power into my blade, a scout I don't recognize interrupts me. Probably Sailor Sun, yelling at me.  
  
"What took you so long? We've been fighting here for almost ten minutes! Some guardian you are!"  
  
"That stung, really it did. It kinda gets me right... wait, I don't have much heart when it comes to you. Nevermind." I shouted back, letting her know what I did, as she grunts angrily at me, and continues her attack on the creatures.  
  
Another three jumped at me. I dropped back two steps, brought the sword to my left side, and called loudly, "StarFlare... SLASH!!!" I drew the blade in a slashing motion, parallel to the ground. An arc of flame shoots out from my blade, neatly severing the enemies in half.  
  
A dark voice called from above, in a manner I myself had been taught. There's only one other person who knows the trick of throwing their voice in all directions. Edward.  
  
"About time you showed up, Misfit. I was hoping you'd be early, so we could talk."  
  
Looking ahead, I saw a tall, tanned figure step out of the shadows. He had dark blond hair, and feral yellow eyes. His voice was cold, and utterly evil. He seemed to be wearing a chest plate, covering the upper half of his chest. His midsection was bare, exposing a distinctive scar in the shape of a starburst. No mistaking him, this was Edward.  
  
"Traitor! You cannot be forgiven for what has transpired." I call out, sounding more civilized than I was thinking. I wanted to tear him apart. All the pain he caused, all the hurt, all the death. I would kill him, and avenge the Court of the stars. Or so I thought.  
  
"You mean I can't say I'm sorry? Too bad. Because really, I'm not. All that fresh blood. And the Princess Clair..."  
  
"Enough! Your grave lies here and now." Who was he talking about? Clair? Not anyone I know, that's for sure.  
  
"Star Song TERMINATE!!!" A huge sonic blast flies past me, careening straight for Edward. He simply raises a hand, and it deflects away, blasting into another group of creatures.  
  
"Watch it, Sun! I'm trying to have a dramatic dialogue with the villain here!" Suddenly realizing I said this in English, I thought she wouldn't understand me. I was wrong.  
  
"Damn the fucking dialogue, Archer! Just kill him!" So, she speaks English, eh? I'll have to switch to Romanian now, just to confuse her.  
  
"Enough of this. Enjoy my summoned pyrelings, Perhaps we'll meet again. That is... if you survive... this. Black Blood Wave!"  
  
A ripple of shadow, not even lasting for a second, washed over myself, and Sun. It hurt. I swear, someone took a knife and sliced open every inch of my skin. So much pain, it was almost unbearable.  
  
I stood up, regardless, and level my sword to face him. As he glared at me, he coolly collected himself, and drew a weapon unlike anything I've ever seen. It's handle was a small rod of metal, maybe a foot long, with a small hook hanging off of the back. From the front, there dangled about four feet of chain links, each one bladed all the way around. At the end of the chain, was something that looked rather nasty. It was a spear's head, shaped like 2 perpendicular Fleur de Lis. It was definitely unique, I'll give it that.  
  
"So, you think you can handle me? Maybe next time we meet, we'll tangle. Farewell then, Guardian." And with that, he vanished, in a cloud of red mist, which smelled like blood.  
  
Sun chose this time to come back around and get on my case. "Who was that? How does he know you and how does he know Clair?" She seemed rather snappish, considering most of the danger just left.  
  
As I pull her closely, I whisper to her, but it comes out more as a snarl and growl than a whisper. "I happen to know that he is the sole reason the Star Kingdom fell."  
  
With that, I walk over to where my bike landed. It landed roughly, but was still ridable. After recalling my armor, I stand it up, hop on, and ride away, leaving Sun questioning what I had said to her just moments before.  
  
A/N: After much berating from my 2 main readers (my g/f and her mom), I've decided to ask for a beta reader. I'd like to thank Tes-sama for that right now. She's the one who owns Sailor Sun, and the Zodiacs. Gary and Edward are of my own creation. Alas that I have to claim Edward... oh well. Every good hero needs an antithesis. Anyways, please r/r, let me know what you think, and thanks to all my loyal readers. You all rock!  
  
Oh, and just so you all know, my chapters will be closer together now that I've entered summer vacation. Unless I get a bunch of work heaped on me all of a sudden... 


	6. Homeward Bound, or Revelations

BowSong: Diary of the Star Archer part 6  
  
~~~Flashback~~~  
Amidst the flame and wreckage of a collapsing ship, Rubeus calls out, in anguish, "My plans have failed again! I'm dead for sure this time." No sooner had he said this, than a dark, cold voice speaks to him, in a slow, even tone. "You don't have to die now. Join with me, and I will rescue you from this ship of fools." Rubeus couldn't help but hesitate for a second, before he agreed, desperately. "Anything! Anything to get me out of here! I will join you! Anything! Just get me out of here!" A split second later, a deserted ship explodes in space...  
~~~End Flashback~~~  
  
As I returned home from the battle on my battered, damaged, nearly destroyed bike, I instinctively drive a farmiliar route. Swing through and get some sort of food, stop at the arcade, blow an hour or two there bantering with the operator as I crush him thoroughly in various games, and slowly returning home, doing a little bit of last-minute random impulse shopping. (A/N: The greatest thing known to mankind, and the only type of shopping either Gary or myself likes.) I pulled into my driveway, parked my bike, and went inside. I dropped my impulse purchases into the basement, and headed for the second floor, my sanctuary and my prison.  
  
I suppose I should describe my house, then. Typical two-story house with a basement, or so everyone thinks at first glimpse. Then, they see the inside, and their opinion changes.  
  
You enter my house to a hallway with lots of doors down both sides. The first door on the right is a closet. Then, going forward, down the right, there's a few more doors. In the order you pass them, they lead to the living room, my bedroom, and the dining room. Forward, the hallway stops, and opens to a modest, but well-kept kitchen. The kitchen has a door, leading to the basement, and another door, leading to the dining room. An interesting fact about my basement is that it is my curio closet, basically. It also has a room in it that I have kept sealed off for many years. Maybe later, if I deem it neccecary to do so, I will break the seal. Going back to the front door, passing the bathroom on what would have been the left, I go to the last door in the house. Withdrawing a key from my pocket, and opening the deadbolt and knob locks, I enter the door, to the stairs up.  
  
At the top of the stairs is a second door. No one except me has ever passed through this door. Written in ancient Romanian script, are the phrases 'Abandon all hope, ye who enter here,' and a quote from the book Dracula, by Bram Stoker. 'Come freely. Go safely. And leave something of the happiness you bring.' Etched into the doorknob is the phrase 'Enter freely, and of your own free will.' Unlocking this door, and throwing it wide open, I step boldly into the room.  
  
The whole floor is two rooms. One is a fully-equipped bathroom. The other, spanning most of my well-sized second floor, I refer to quite often as my lair. The entire floor is covered in hardwood, painted black, with a silver Spanish circle. (A/N it's a Fencing discipline/school and training) The celing is painted as a very accurate map of the night sky, with the twelve Zodiac signs highlighted. The light fixtures are set in the places of the brightest stars. And then, there's the walls. They're my favorite part.  
  
The walls are lined with rack after rack of medieval weaponry. Just about every weapon known to man, except guns, (I hate guns) has a representative in this room. One wall has an almost bare panel. Written on there, in a sprawling script, are the lyrics to Metallica's 'Sanitarium.' This panel also pulls down to reveal a bed. I pull this down and flop onto the bed, falling asleep almost instantly. And starting to dream soon after that.  
  
Another night, another dream. This one, again from the Silver Millenium. Although, I can safely say this was in the same place as my last dream... I think. This must have been before that dream, though, since this visit seems to be under much happier circumstances. There was no battle, no distress, just... tranquility. Frankly, I was a little bored though. Something needed to happen, and happen it did.  
  
I seemed to be entering a grand building, a palace in the truest sense of the word. The only thought going into my head, and it was an annoying thought, was that 'Where there's a palace like this, there has to be royalty. So where are they?' I soon found out, as they came out to greet me. I must have been important, as it looked like the King and Queen, and maybe their kids. The queen looked kindly at me, and spoke in a calm, even voice, which belied the true fire inside it.   
  
"Gareth Usar, representative of the Moon kingdom and court, we welcome you to our kingdom. I am Queen Dawn, this is my husband, King Solaris, and these our our children, Dawn and Oryan. Our other daughter, Clair, should be here soon." And with that, they turned to leave. The kids seemed nice enough, almost friendly. But, I haven't seen the third one yet. And then I saw her face, now I'm a believer.  
  
Seriously, I did see her face then. And I did believe that I had just lucked out by getting to meet her. Her hair, like her sisters', was flame red. Her eyes were a bright, shining green, similar to the Star Tear. She stood about half a foot shorter than me. I knew this because she had been running to meet me, and just happened to run into me. Literally.  
  
While I managed to maintain my position of being on my feet, she... erm... bounced off of me. Offering a hand, in the fashion of a true gentleman, I introduced myself, probably sounding as corny as humanly possible, without even trying. "I'm sorry, miss. Let me help you to your feet. My name is Gareth. Gareth Usar. And you are?" She smiled, took my hand, and said, while standing "Clair. Princess Clair of Gemini." Wait... Princess?!?! There go my chances with her. "You're Gary, from the Moon, right? I was coming down to meet you, and it seems I have. Well, thank you for the hand, I must be off, then."  
  
A fair amount of time passed in the dream. Probably a couple of weeks. Clair and I drifted into a relationship, I'm still not sure how, and Oryan and Solaris had left to go do something. I never quite caught what it was. A few days passed since they left, and we got horrible news. They had been killed. This was devastating to both myself, and Clair. This was only the start.   
  
The dream continued on, eventually leading up to where my previous dream occurred, as I was forced through that torment again. And, once again, I woke up screaming. I tried to sleep again, but it wouldn't come. All the tragic memories of my past came flooding back, and would rekindle in my head as soon as I would close my eyes. So, I did what came natural when sleep did not. I practiced with my weapons. Often when I sleep here, I relive bad memories. Thus, this is why my lair is my prison. It is also my sanctuary, as I can escape my problems, keep them at bay with the flash of steel as I practice.  
  
Author's Note and Disclaimer: I do not own Sailor Moon, or the Solar Kingdom. The Solar Kingdom belongs to Tes-sama, and Sailor Moon belongs to Naoko Takeuchi. As far as author's notes goes, this took awhile and was tough to do. I don't want to hear any of you people piss and moan about the length or anything like that, I did what I was comfortable with, okay? ^_^ Now, as far as flames go, I don't really care anymore. They can be deleted quite easily. So, flame on if you must. Until next time,, Ciao.  
  
Gryff  
  



	7. Visions of the Past

BowSong: Diary of the Star Archer part 7   
After that sleepless night, I felt almost more... alive than I have in awhile. Possibly from the fact that I still had the adrenalin from my practice running through my blood, possibly because I simply wanted to put the past behind me. Either way, I felt awake enough to go to school. So, after a shower and a quick costume change, I left.   
I was hoping to avoid all interaction with any of the scouts today, in the hopes that I might have a day to think, to clear my head. As always, what I had hoped for wasn't going to happen, and in a bad way.   
I was walking down the hallway, heading to homeroom early, and suddenly, I was grabbed by the collar and dragged into one of the unused classrooms. I seriously wanted to know what was going on here, but instinct also kicked in. I spun around, catching the wrist and hand that was on my collar. Putting it in a hold that almost broke it, I start cursing my attacker out in Romanian. Much to my surprise and dismay, the so-called 'attacker' was Mitaiyoko.  
"Mitaiyoko! What the hell do you think you're doing? If you would have startled me, I could have, and would have broken your wrist! What do you want," I snapped at her. I do not like her. I really do not like her.   
"Well, Archer, I want to know who that was, how he betrayed the Star court, how he knew Clair, but, above all else, I want an explanation. What is going on here?" She seemed just as thrilled to see me as I was her.   
"Well, since you are on the team, I think I will be nice and actually tell you. That... creature's name was edward. At one point I thought he was my cousin. This _is_ true, however, he is my cousin from the Star Court," I try to explain. This doesn't seem to click, though.   
"So you mean he was reborn, too? Why would the betrayer have been reborn? You'd better have a good explanation for this, because it's all too fishy that you show up, then he shows up."   
"Honestly, I don't think he was reborn. I mean, I don't think he ever died in the first place, even after I sacrificed myself to kill him. He killed Clair, the princess of Gemini, and your sister, I believe. I was sworn to protect her. I failed. You have no idea how much that hurts me."   
"What do you mean, he never died in the first place? Is he undead, or something?"   
"Maybe. Perhaps. I don't know. I honestly don't know..." And with that, I turned and left. As I left the room, I heard a mocking voice in my head. It sounded like it was mocking me. But, it was more a howling than a voice. It said, "I'm back, Gary. Perhaps we'll play again, just like old times..."   
Later that day, at lunch, the scouts and I were sitting at lunch, as usual. I figured that if Mitaiyoko was going to drag me into the thick of it, regardless, I was going to hang out with the ones i'm friendly with. And suddenly, I saw something that made me pale. A gigantic wolf, bigger than me, it's head thrown back in a howl of bloodlust, the Negamoon symbol emblazoned on his forehead. In it's hands (hands?!) was a giantine black warhammer, the head of it the size of the wolf's head, and shaped like a wolf's head, but with a wicked spike at the end. I blanched.   
Usagi, being her usual overly high-strung self, asked what was wrong. I just told her I thought I saw a dog, but I was mistaken. I heard a mocking laugh, the same voice in almost a howl, call back, "A dog? You mock me. I am a wolf. Indeed, a wolf from hell, and the Cancer of the Cosmos. We shall meet soon, Gary."   
At this awkward moment, who should show up but the queen of the bitches herself, Mitaiyoko. "So, I see that Gary is with you all today. I wondered where the little worm went off to. Oh well."   
I was not happy. Hell, I was flat-out pissed off. "Mitaiyoko, for being such a bitch, I must hope for the sake of the world that you don't have a sister like yourself." Her smirking at this did not reassure me.   
"Gary wa baka, I do have a sister. Her name is Hikari. Haven't you seen her around here? Wait, with your observation skills, you probably haven't even noticed that my hair is red."   
A voice came from the side. "Did I hear my name?" And then, I saw it. I knew it. It was Clair, or as her new name is, Hikari. I just hoped she wasn't like her sister.   
"Erm, hello. My name's Gary. And you are?"   
"Tachiseiko Hikari. Nice to meet you."   
"And to yourself. I can see you're nothing like your sister. I hope that stays with you."   
"Mitaiyoko! What have you been doing to this poor boy?"   
"Nothing, nothing at all. Only what he deserves, nothing more."   
I just stifled the urge to laugh, sat back, and watched the two of them go at it. Hikari was the split image of Mitaiyoko, only with a hairstyle like Ami's. She also seemed to actually posess a heart, unlike her sister.   
The rest of the school day was uneventful, although I swear I never stopped hearing that haunting laugh, echoing like a howl. I got home, went upstairs to my lair, and locked the door behind me. Something did not seem right.   
"So Gary, we meet again. You haven't changed... much." With that, a cloaked figure stepped into the light of the room. All I could see of him was his cloak, which looked like you were staring into the night sky. Only... it was surreal. The stars were twinkling, the meteorites streaked across it on occasion. And I saw his face. And it truly frightened me. My hands went to the first blade they could, and I swung. I swung at that black, fanged, grinning death's head figure that stood in the center of the room, that stepped out from nowhere. The blade absolutrely splintered.   
"You should know that you can't stop death. It will come as it will. Always remember that. My name is Rift Moondrake. You will yet remember me, old friend. But I am not who I was before. I am now the Cancer of the Cosmos."   
With that, Exor came into the room, and saw rift, as Rift raises his mask towards Exor, who fainted with a scream of terror. Replacing the mask and turning towards me, he laughed, the haunting laugh from earlier, grinned into his death's head mask, and simply... vanished. I mean, litewrally vanished. Now you see it, now you don't? Well, that's what happened.   
Exor woke up, and uttered only a small question before fainting away again. "Prince... Moondrake... returned?!" He wasn't going to be of help. I stayed awake all night again that night. It looked like there were going to be a lot of sleepless nights, from now on...  
  
A/N and disclaimer: I don't own anything here save for Gary, Exor, Edward, and the storyline, kinda-sorta. The zodiac scouts belong to Tes-sama, and Rift is my brother's character. You'll learn more of him later, like when I get part 8 up. Ciao!   
~Gryff  
  
P.S. Please, please, please REVIEW! 


	8. A Good Old Fashioned School Hall Brawl

BowSong: Diary of the Star Archer part 8  
  
Another night gone, wasted away to nothing during my wakefulness. That damned Wolf-man... that Rift, whoever he is... is going to haunt me eternally, I know it. Oh well. I shook off the thought and prepared for another zombie day at school.  
  
After downing a few cups... sorry a few pots of coffee, I finally was awake enough to walk out the door and get to school. No sooner had I gotten there, then my earlier premonition was proven true. That laughing again! Always with the laughing! 'When will he ever stop,' I silently think to myself. Then do I realize my mistake when the answer comes.   
  
"Never."  
  
And with that, I was punched hard. On my right, were lockers. They were now in front and behind me, as I was lodged in one. I peeled out, and took a fighting stance, only to realize I couldn't see what had hit me. He was invisible! Cursing silently in Romanian, I also notice a bit of a crowd has been gathering around me, to watch and see if 'I'll Throw myself into the lockers again.'  
  
If that's the way he wanted to play, then so be it, I thought. I braced, and swung. He connected with my gut mid-swing. 'There's no way I can fight this,' I thought to myself. I start to gather myself, to brace for another assault like the sledgehammer blow to my gut.  
  
It didn't come right away. Instead, I heard the same mocking voice in my head. "What's the matter, Gary? Afraid of a little competition? Don't feel like fighting back? I know you've been trained to fight blind. Now, prove it to me!"  
  
One of the punks at school stepped forward, and started giving me crap. As I said, started. All the more that got out of his mouth was "Hey look, the American idiot's beating the shit out of himself. Let's help him..." And with that, he was punched into a wall. He hit with a sickening sounding 'crunch', and landed.  
  
The other thing I noticed, other than that kid getting his ribcage pulped, was that Rift had revealed himself. This would make the fight much easier. Picking up a pole that was by the lockers, I charged forward, only to hear the words "Dark MoonBeam... SLASH!"  
  
Rift had swung his hammer. All I saw was a black arc of force coming straight towards me. I tried to block, but it didn't work quite right. I was picked up and thrown. I later found out that that was the sucessful way to block that, but I didn't know that then. All I knew was that really hurt. I was pissed now, so I pressed the attack.  
  
Rift swayed and danced, more graceful than these people have ever seen in their lives. He moved almost like a fluid, and unstoppable. He stopped my advantage cold with a single hammer-swing. My weapon was reduced from a quarterstaff to sword size. Two swords. So, knowing not to look a gift horse in the mouth, I used my new armament and tried again. I was lucky I did that.  
  
I heard the words "Anti-Matter... BOMB!" Suddenly, where I was standing about a second ago wasn't there. Instead, there was about a 5-foot hole leading into the basement of the school. The Archery range is the only thing down there. 'The Archery Range!' That did it. I had a plan.  
  
Pressing my attack again, I realized I had no hope to defeat Rift unless I became the Star Archer. But also in my attack, I managed to knock Rift's mask clear from his face. I caught it with ease, having sacrificed a weapon to it anyways, since the psuedo-sword in my left hand shattered on contact with the mask, I held it to him in a mock-salute and jumped down the hole.  
  
In midair on the way down the dark, shadowy hole, I transformed. Rift walked over the hole, and was just hovering there. Thinking to myself, 'I have GOT to learn some of this guy's tricks some day,' I begin to fire a volley of arrows at him. A few hit, but he didn't seem fazed at all. So, I resorted to Plan B.  
  
I called forth my sword, and swung it in a great upward arc, while calling "StarFlare... SLASH!" The flare swung upward, connecting with Rift who simply knocked it away. He laughed, and looked at me.  
"Star Archer, I would like the mask that the student down there took, if you don't mind." I tossed it at him, and he laughed, while putting it back on. At this point is when the scouts showed up, but it was too late. As soon as they showed up, Rift jumped out the window, though there was still a good six feet to the ground below.  
  
I came up and watched out the window as Rift landed. There were policemen all over the place, including one in particular. He identified himself just then.  
  
"Alright, whoever the fuck you are, freeze! This is Alpha Squadron team leader Akasa. We have the place surrounded. Give up, there's no... WHAT THE FUCK?!" The last part as rift did his infamous disappearing trick, with a final call left behind him. 'Akasa, eh? You've got balls. I like you. We'll meet again sometime.'  
  
'So much for a normal day,' I thought, as I finished up the rest of the day and went home. I finally slept, then.  
  
A/N and disclaimer: None of this, save for Gary, and my own twisted ideas are mine. Rift, technically isn't mine either. He's my brother's. The Zodiacs (not featured in this chapter) Belong to Queen Tessandry de Sanyochisei. Part 9 will be up... sometime... Ciao.  
~Gryff 


	9. Oooooo Shiny!

BowSong: The Diary of the Star Archer part 9  
  
The day after the attack, I was sitting in class, wondering about my ring. It seemed to be bent a bit, so I was trying to pull it off, but was stopped by someone who obviously admired my ring... a lot.  
  
"Where the hell did you find the Terra Star Emerald?"  
  
Just then, I realized who the admirer was. Mitaiyoko. Not a person I want to deal with when I'm half asleep... who am I kidding? Never a person I wanted to deal with!  
  
"I'll ask again, since you were too stupid to respond the first time I asked. How the hell did you get that emerald?"  
  
Grumblingly, I managed to speak. "The bird gave it to me. Ask him, he should be around... ah shit, that's right. He's at home resting today."  
  
"Well then, I guess I'll have to go ask him then, won't I?"  
  
"There is no way in all unholy HELL you are setting foot inside my house!"  
  
"We can do this the hard way, or the easy way, Gary. And I really don't feel like destroying the place to get to the bird. So, when will you be expecting me?"  
  
I almost snapped back with 'When Hell freezes over,' but I was pleasant. Well, as pleasant as I get around her. "You'll follow me as soon as school gets out, and you'll get home on your own. Do you understand?"  
  
"Perfectly. You're an asshole."  
  
"To you, yes. Now, go away, you're ruining my morning."  
  
Thankfully, she left after that, uttering a badly butchered Romanian curse. I was tempted to correct her, but I just laughed quietly as I went to my next class.  
  
The day droned on. Gym class was alright, since no one can beat me in just about anything we do. We did wrestling today. That would have been fun, had it been a challenge. I finished the day off with my optional class, Home Ec. No, I didn't get to pick, that was the only option they had left for me. It went alright, I guess. I didn't burn anything. But, then again, I never do.  
  
The last bell rang, and I was about to go home and sleep, maybe hit the arcade, when I was tapped on the shoulder.  
  
"Forgetting about someone? Namely me?"  
  
'Shit. I forgot she needs to talk to the bird'. I braced my nerves for hour after hour of being wracked. "Follow me, and be quiet."  
  
"Like I have anything to say to you anyways?"  
  
The walk was spent in silence. I planned slow, torurous, painful revenge on that damn bird for subjecting me to this, amidst glaring matches between Mitaiyoko and myself.  
  
When we finally got to my house, I unlocked the door, and let her through, keeping a very watchful eye on her. I went and got the cage the bird sleeps in. I shook it, and rudely snapped him awake.  
  
"What the hell is going on?"  
  
"Wake up, Bird. The Inquisition is upon you."  
  
"What the hell do you mean by that, archer boy?"  
  
Mitaiyoko interrupted our argument, tankfully getting right to her point. "Listen here, bird. I want to know how that sorry excuse for a human got a hold of the Terra Star Emerald."  
  
Exor looked stupidly at her, until I held up my ring, indicating what she meant. He seemed to get it, then.  
  
"Well, you see, that's a very interesting and exciting story. Problem is, I don't know it. The only one who knows is Gary, and I mean the one from the past. I'm afraid you're SOL if you want to know that."  
  
Great. Way to go, featherbrain. Those words would probably spell my doom.  
  
"Oh well, I guess I just stick to my original theory of he stole it, and be gone, before I become ill from his presence."  
  
"All right, then," I started in, thoroughly annoyed by her arrogance, and her nerve. Insulting someone in their home. What's next, huh? "Go. I'd warn ya not to let the door hit your ass on the way out, but it'd be worth the laugh." She stormed out, angrily.  
  
No sooner had she gotten down one stair outside than she got a call on her communicator. "Mitaiyoko! There's some kind of creature down by the lake in the park! We need your help down here, NOW!" The voice cut out, and she turned around, stqaring at me impatiently.  
  
"Well," I ask, wondering why she hasn't left yet.  
  
"Where's your bathroom?" She's looking even more annoyed. "You don't honestly expect me to transform out here, do you?" I point down the hall to the bathroom door, neglecting to mention the tricky doorknob.  
  
"THe door will be locked when you come out. Just let yourself out. Touch nothing, or I will hunt you down and horribly torture you. Understand?" I got no response, I just left.  
  
I hopped onto my bike, and rode into battle. Leaving my bike a bit behind so it wouldn't get damaged any further, I transformed and charged in.  
  
~~~~~~Meanwhile~~~~~~  
  
Rift was sitting on the moon, staring at the fountain in front of the palace ruins. He reached for the ornament at the top, which looked like the hilt of a sword. His hand closed in on the handle, ever so slowly reacing closer, until the tip of his finger just barely brushed it. Suddenly, a crackle of energy sounded, and Rift's hand was gone. He pulled his arm away, hand regenerating as it came. "Damn it, so close that time. I could actually touch it." He looked at the ornamental hilt again, and smiled to himself. "I will have you, I swear it." Just then, he was interrupted by a pair of creatures, both very visibly frightened of him. "What do you two want? You know full well you're not welcome here..."  
  
One of the creatures finally got the courage to speak up. "The boss wants you for something." Rift just unslung his guitar and started playing, showing how little he cared.  
  
"He said something about Rubeus, I think" Rift stopped playing, and looked the speaker straight in the eyes. Grinning, he spoke. "They say don't kill the messenger. But do you want to know why a guitar is called an axe?" No sooner had he said that, than he swung his guitar high into the air, and, flipping a switch, dropped the now-bladed guitar through the silent creature, splitting it neatly with a grand arc. He slung the guitar back onto his shoulder, and began to walk away. "I'll be there when I'm ready, and not a moment before. Make certain Shiranai knows this." With that, he dissapeared into the shadows.  
  
~~~~~~Back to Gary~~~~~~  
  
As I charged in, my brain was working overtime, analyzing every possible thing a creature like this could throw at me. I readied my bow for a shot, and began firing at the minor creatures the moment they came into view. The scouts looked entirely pleased to see me there, so I just continued firing, making my way through the enemy ranks, to rejoin the scouts.  
  
"Archer! Where's Sailor Sun?" The Zodiacs looked worried. I simply stated "I dunno." and that was thatm until the main villain finally reared his ugly head. It was Rubeus, someone the scouts fought long before even the Zodiacs showed up. "How the heck is he still alive? I was under the impression that he was a crispy crtter, blown up with his ship..." I let it trail off there, knowing full well my confusion was shared by everyone else around me.  
  
"I must admit, I almost was dead, but I have my new master to thank for that. And for the awesome new power I have, which I will simply crush you with!"  
  
Rubeus prepared to blast us with something, though I don't know what, because he was stopped cold when Rift appeared from out of the shadows behind Rubeus.  
  
"Rubeus! Shiranai wants you. Now." As Rift said this, he grabbed Rubeus by the back of his vest, and teleported out of there, with him in tow.  
  
Now, I just felt confused, worried, and cheated out of a fight. I was about to throw down my bow and stream curses in whatever language came out first, but Sailor Sun showed up just then, and helped us fend off the last of the wimpy little creatures Rubeus left for us.  
  
"Archer, why didn't you tell me about the problem with the door handle?" Her eyes looked hungry for blood.  
  
"I thought I fixed it," I lied.  
  
"Obviously not well enough. Now, are these things the reason you called me here? They're wusses!"  
  
"No, Sailor Sun. Rubeus was here. Key word: Was. Rift grabbed him, and I think he's in trouble. Let's just all go home now." With that, I turned and prepared to leave, figuring I earned the rest of the day off. 'Enough with this nerve-grating crap, let's go blow something up,' said one part of my brain. The rest agreed, so I took and headed down to the arcade. Fortunately, my friend Motoki was there. Unfortunately, Mitaiyoko was there as well, and talking to him.  
  
"Oh god, not you. Who let the Supreme Demoness in here?"  
  
"What the hell are you doing here, Gary?"  
  
"You know, the same could be said to you."  
  
Motoki stepped in between us, looking a little worried. "Gary, my friend, much as I'd love to take that rematch you owe me, my girlfriend is here, and I have to watch the arcade until the owner gets back. I'm sorry."  
  
"You're her boyfriend? I pity you, my friend." I just decided to go home and blow something up on one of my video games. 'There's a reason you have a 60" TV in your living room,' I think to myself. As I'm walking out of the arcade, I hear Mitaiyoko say to Motoki "You're friends with him? Well, I suppose every good person needs their faults..." I didn't hear anymore, as i revved my bike, and raced home.  
  
A/N and Disclaimer: There we go, finally got that written. i'm terribly sorry about the gap of time between this and part 8, but I had writer's block. Bad case of it, too. That, and a whole lot of other random stuff in my life... oh well. you don't need the soap opera. I'll drop it. Anyways, usual disclaimers apply. Zodiacs belong to Queen Tessandry de Sanyochisei, or whatever her s/n is now, (she keeps changing it on me -.-;;) Rift belongs to my Bro, and all the other characters not covered here belong to Naoko Takeuchi. Until next time, Ja ne!  
  
~Gryff 


	10. Renewed Alliances, Redraw the Battle Lin...

BowSong: The Diary of the Star Archer part 10  
  
Shiranai scowled at Rubeus, displeasure written obviously on his face, though he  
  
quickly recovers his calm demeanor. "Rubeus, you were ordered not to attack yet. You disobeyed me, and that disappoints me. You would have died in battle, had Rift not saved you. However, recent events have advanced the time tables some. With our latest acquisition, you cannot possibly lose the battle. Now go. I do not want to hear of another failure."  
  
Rubeus took the artifact, a wicked looking sword, out of the hands of a nearby creature. Growling with rage, he thrust it through the creature's chest. As he wrenched it out, he was disappointed to find the creature still standing. Then, he realized why it was standing.  
  
The creature had turned to stone.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
I spent most of my weekend just sitting at home, thinking. Mostly, what I thought about was how bizarre life has gotten for me. First, I become the Star Archer. Then, there's the who dead cousin come back to fight me scenario. Now, to top it all off, I have a psychopathic werewolf and a death-defying asshole out to kill me as well. If I wasn't able to swear all of this was the absolute truth, I would have had myself comitted a long, LONG time ago. Oh well, I need to be comitted anyways.  
  
The rest of my weekend was spent doing research in the Book of the Archer. I had found a rather interesting section, written in a different handwriting than the rest of it. The section was all about various magical weapons and armors. 'Now here's something I can really get into,' I think to myself.  
  
Flipping through, I found a page with a frightening farmiliarity to its appearance. On it, staring back at me, was a black, grinning Death's Head mask. The next couple of pages were about Rift's armor, which was very useful, as it had a great deal of facts about that armor. For one thing, it was made not out of metal, but out of black jade. The other, more disheartening fact was that it was indestructible. His armor can not be damaged by any means. Damned disheartening fact, considering one is against the person wearing this armor.  
  
Continuing on, shudders of terror and delight overtaking me as I read more about these items of power, I found a section about a wicked blade that frightened me just to see. the next section read as such:  
  
'The Gorgon's Blade is a particularly cruel weapon, posessed by the spirit guide of the Lunar Tribe of the Snake, this weapon is enchanted with an aura that, when it inflicts a wound, causes the blood that pours forth to burn as acid. The weapon is easily recognized, as the handle is wrapped in a snake skin, and the pommel appears as the head of a snake. The crosspiece is like the hood of a cobra, and the blade like a great fang. This weapon is presumed destroyed by the Lunar Tribe of the Wolf, but no one knows for sure. Know this, however, simply to see this blade is to fear it, and be drawn to it, like the gaze of the cobra before it strikes. Let it not strike you down, however, for to lose your life to it is to lose your body, and become as stone.'  
  
Not a particularly friendly little toy, but at least it's been broken. I'd hate to run into that one. The next section was written much the same, but it only drew upon folklore. This was obviously a hero's blade, just from the design. It had a long blade, broad as an axe, a fairly simple hilt assembly. The pommel and craftsman's seal were the same, a glowing crescent moon, the symbol of the Moon Kingdom's royal family.  
  
This sword, the MoonBlade, was at one time the blade of the first Lunar King, a man who commanded all the tribes of the moon, and brought them together under his rule. He forged this sword shortly before going off to battle the Dark Emporer, a rival for command of the moon. The two fought, and struck each other down.  
  
Reading on further, I found that this legend is the basis of why a Queen is chosen to rule the land, as the queen ruled in the King's stead, and continued to lead after his death. His body and weapon were never found, as with the Dark Emporer, but they erected the grand fountain that sits in front of the castle in his honor, and crafted the topmost ornament as a likeness of his blade.  
  
The last item that I thought was noteworthy was a necklace called the Bond of the Alliance. It, according to the book, was a gift given as the symbol of the joining by alliance. It was given to the symbol of the alliance by a princess of the sun. This necklace increased the overall power of the wearer, provided the alliance is true. It was lost, obviously, when the two kingdoms of the alliance both fell.  
  
A day passed, awaiting an attack. That day passed, uneventfully, turning into a few days. A few days stretched and multiplied, turning into a week. One week spread to two weeks, waiting for an attack. Then, the attack came... in the middle of school.  
  
I was sitting in my Physics class, trying not to fall asleep in the middle of the teacher's lecture about Thermal Expansion. As I had almost dozed off, Usagi, transformed, came flying into class... by means of the window. As the class bolted out of the room, I helped her to her feet, and prepared to join the fight myself.  
  
"Who is it this time?"  
  
"Rubeus. But be careful, he has some wicked new sword with him, too. It's been melting slash marks into things, and the cuts it leaves are not clean."  
  
"Oh shit... I think I know the weapon he has..." I let it trail off there, as I took off running, hitting the roof of the school. Rather bizarre to hit the roof of the school, especially when one was running down the hallway not a second before. 'How the hell did I get here?' I think to myself, as I turned around, only to be greeted by a grinning black Death's head .  
  
"Archer, be careful. His weapon is lethal. Use your height to your advantage." With that, Rift disappeared.  
  
As I transformed, I took a running leap off the roof, getting the drop on Rubeus... literally. As I came down, I confirmed his weapon as the Gorgon's Blade.  
  
Rubeus was sweeping a wide path of acidic bite. He pressed his attack further, beyond where I could begin to bring him on the defensive. He slammed into Usagi, sending her sprawling back. Just then, Rift appeared at the battle, with his mask removed, and a peculiar sight upon his forehead. The Dark Moon symbol appeared to be fighting for control with the Moon Kingdom's royal crest, the two moons touching at the ends, making almost a full moon upon his face.  
  
"Rubeus! Fight fairly, or suffer the consequences..."  
  
Rubeus stopped, and looked at Rift, a grim smile upon his face. "What's the matter, Rift? Forget where your loyalties lie? Such a pity that you've turned your tail. You'll just have to watch your sister die again, then." Rubeus laughed coldly, and lunged. Rift teleported, just barely in time.  
  
A sickening crash echoed across the now silent battlefield. Rift was bent over backwards, protecting Usagi. The Gorgon's Blade was embedded in his chest. His breastplate, his indestructable breastplate, was spiderwebbed with cracks, some shards falling away from around the blade. Rift stood up, gripping the handle, and wrenched the blade out of his chest. The wound closed, slowly, as Rift was being turned to stone, just as slowly. The Dark Moon vanished, leaving only the Royal Moon burning brilliantly on his forehead.  
  
Rift lunged at Rubeus with the Gorgon's Blade, stopping just short of driving the blade through his skull, as the enchantment overtook him, and he turned to stone. The sword bit into Rubeus' flesh just barely, but just enough to draw forth blood, which burned it's way down, leaving a permanent scar along the left side of his face. He began to charge an energy burst, to destroy the statue, but then thought better as an arrow streaked by, dissipating the energy along with it. He paled, and teleported away, leaving only an echoing voice behind.  
  
"Redraw the battle lines... another pawn has left the board."  
  
After we were sure he was gone, we turned, one by one, to Rift's statue. The Royal Moon crest was still burning just as brightly as earlier. The cracks on his breastplate were gone, the holes repaired. The Gorgon's Blade, which itself had the blade turned to stone, had a sizeable crack running the length of the blade. I ran my fingers along the blade almost like a feather's touch, tracing the crack, and the blade shattered to a million splinters.  
  
Mitaiyoko had a puzzled look on her face, as she quietly asked, "He sacrificed himself to save Usagi. Does this make him friend or foe?"  
  
I had no insult for her, she was right in asking. "He was a friend, at the end. unfortunately, that blade was enchanted. A bite of the Gorgon's Blade, deep enough to destroy the body, will preserve it forever... for it turns its victims to stone. No one has yet recovered..."  
  
We all left the battlefield in a grim silence. Later, I came back to that site, and retrieved the statue of our fallen friend. I placed him in a shrine within my sanctuary, and replaced the shattered blade and hilt with a new blade, one I forged as fitting for a hero's grave. I gave him my own hero's funeral, and even the bird was speechless, save for one statement.  
  
"Farewell, Prince MoonDrake. Someday, we will destroy that honorless bastard, and you will be avenged." Even if we would mean I'd do it, and the bird would claim credit, he was right. Rift would be avenged, I swore it.  
  
A/N: Insert usual disclaimers here Yes, I know, I hurt Rift. I'm bad, I'm sorry. The chibi-devil Gryff told me to do it... and Rift agreed. There will be some expected and unexpected occurrences in the next chapter, but no clue when that will be up. Regardless, all those who were riding my ass about posting this chapter, I have only this to say in my defense.  
  
Here it is, I hope you're all happy. ^_^  
  
~Gryff 


	11. Nocturne of Shadow 1 of 3

BowSong : The Diary of the Star Archer part 11  
  
Rubeus stood in his chamber of mirrors, upon his replaced ship, gazing at the hideously burned scar on his face. He ran his fingers lightly across it, a scowl appearing on his face, slowly replaced by a wicked smile. He knew the man who gave him the scar would never again harm him, never again stand in his way. Rift MoonDrake had fallen in battle.  
  
A hand falls on his shoulder, from out of the shadows, startling him from his introspection. It is clad in a black gauntlet, with great claws coming from the fingers and knuckles, the back covered with thousands of tiny meat hooks, generally the palm as well, but not now. As Rubeus turns around, he's met with burning red eyes, and a wickedly cold face, his mouth a faint line, upturned in a smirk.  
  
"Rubeus, must I always clean up your work after you? I tire of playing babysitter. But, this changes as of today. I have been ordered to proceed with my plan. Your orders are to stay here, and contemplate your failure."  
  
"Very well, Bloodling. I eagerly await to hear of your failure, as you surely will. Your plan works off of uncertainties, and luck. Lady luck may smile upon you for a time, but she's sure to turn away eventually, and you know it."  
  
"Enough. I tire of this, I have to finish my preparations. Farewell, failure."  
  
And with that, the figure disappears back into the shadows. A faint hint of the scent of blood pervaded the air, alongside a cruel laugh, sourced from nowhere, and everywhere at once.  
  
Edward had left nothing to chance, despite what outward appearances had shown.  
  
~~~~~~  
  
I got out of bed, one of the few nights I actually slept in my regular bedroom, simply out of respect for my sanctum, now renamed the Hero's Tomb, by myself and Exor, the only living souls to have entered that room, aside from Rift in his earlier state of villainy. I began my morning ritual of stagger out of bed, stumble around, eyes half-closed until I find the pot of coffee I had made the night before, and left to heat. Drain the pot, and go to train myself again.  
  
I entered the Tomb in silent reverence to the fallen soldier. Taking up my blade, I offer a salute to his statue, and take my beginning position. I had done this for a week now, since summer vacation had begun. This morning, I was fortunate to be quick on my feet, for just as I took my stance, I noticed the statue begin to spiderweb with cracks, which slowly spread across the arms, the torso, and finally, the whole body, as the stone shattered, falling away from... flesh?  
  
Rift lunged forward, blindly, still thinking he was faced off against Rubeus. I barely deflected his sword away, but still grazing my arm, he began with a flurry of cuts and slashes, all I could do was try and avoid them. I was still grazed on the forearm a lot, probably from being used to the bracers on the Archer's armor, but I finally managed to stop his blade, by diving out of the way as he buried it into a wall. That's when he finally seemed to wake up to where he was... sort of.  
  
"What the... where am I? Where did Rubeus go? What happened, Gary? And why are you bleeding?" Rift honestly looked confused, though the situation seemed to warrant it. "And why the hell am I so hungry?" I facefaulted.  
  
"Come with me, Rift. There's a really good buffet right down the street, we'll talk there." We left my sanctuary, and went down the street to the buffet, to descend upon it like a pair of hungry wolves... though how true that statement is for one of us, anyways.  
  
~~~~~~  
  
Rift and I began eating, both as ravenous as the other. The only difference is, as I started to slow, Rift started to gain. Plate after plate disappeared, before he finally settled back for a break to talk.  
  
"I know what you're going to ask, Gary. How I fit into the power play between the Princess and our enemies. After that betrayal by Rubeus, I can assure you that I am your friend and ally, and will remain so. I was, or rather, still am Prince Rift MoonDrake, adopted son of Queen Serenity, and therefore brother of the Princess, Usagi.  
  
"I can tell you this much about the leader of our enemies. His name is Shiranai, and he has great power within him, but he hides it well, even from someone like me. The other two generals under his power, you know. Rubeus is the general he utilizes more often, as he is the more reliable. Even Shiranai knows better than to trust Edward with any great undertaking, he seems to only run on his agenda, and you appear to be written all over it, Gary.  
  
"Perhaps some other time, we can talk of the past in greater detail. As for now, I feel drained, but a lot better, now that I've eaten. And I will feel better still after I have some more of this, and go to sleep."  
  
I almost did not believe him when he said he was after more, until I saw him appear back at the table with another 4 plates worth, pack them away, and repeat this process five or six times. You would never assume that he could eat all of that food, from his physical appearance.  
  
When Rift stood up to leave, I finally got a good look at his physical features. He looked to be a few inches taller than me, so he was probably about six and a half feet. His eyes were a very pale, pale color, that looked to match some of his hair, which seemed to be shifting from stark white to... platinum? The oddity of it was, he looked like he might have barely tipped the scales at 160 pounds. He looked as if he was left on a rack somewhere for a few years.  
  
~~~~~~  
  
When we got back to my house, I showed him to my room, where he passed out on the bed almost instantly, which was good, since I was supposed to meet the scouts in a bit. Glancing at the clock on the wall, I scribbled Rift a quick note, letting him know where I had gone, and ran out the door.  
  
I got to the meeting with about a minute to spare. That is, I got there about five minutes before we started, since Usagi was late again, but not nearly as late today as normal. Which in itself is unusual. We glanced around, trying to see if everyone was here, but it appeared not. Minako was missing. Usagi really looked confused, when she turned towards us.  
  
"Have any of you guys seen Mina? We were supposed to get together earlier, but she never showed. It's not like her, to miss an appointment," she said, sounding only the most concerned for her friend, but she was answered by a farmiliarly obnoxious voice. Mitaiyoko.  
  
"No, it's not like her. Usually, you're the one who misses appointments, twit. I have to report that Sailor Sagittarius is also missing. She also didn't show at our meeting. Maybe they're together? Try them on a communicator."  
  
Everyone went fumbling around looking for theirs, as I calmly pull mine out, and start trying to lock in on Mina's. All I got was a screaming hiss of static. It sounded like something had knocked out her communicator, which started setting off all sorts of mental alarms, but I ignored them, thinking she may have fallen on it.  
  
"Oh well, she didn't show. Let's not worry about it, let's just all make sure we're keeping our eyes open, and pass the word on to her when you see her next, that's really all this meeting was about." At that, we all seemed to part to our separate ways, for the time being.  
  
Upon returning home, I found the house was empty. Rift had left his own note, simply stating he had some things he had to try to find, and would return only when he had. That left me home alone, so I did some more practicing, watched some TV, and fell asleep on the couch.  
  
I awoke to the phone ringing. On answering it, I found out that it was Hikari on the line. She was trying to find out if I had seen Sailor Pisces at all, since she wasn't at her house. Now things were really starting to not sound so kosher, but I kept my thoughts to myself again. I decided that we should meet, and see if the feeling was mutual.  
  
At the meeting, we appeared to be all there, except the three that hadn't been around recently. Nothing really had been covered, except that everyone was required to keep communicators on and in general contact with everyone, at all times. This wasn't a problem, and meant that if something was going on, it would be known about immediately.  
  
That night, I started praising my intuition, when I was awakened to one hell of a racket over one of the channels. There was an odd sound, halfway between a struggle, halfway not. Two voices sounded clearly through. One was Ami, the other one...  
  
Edward was in her room with her. Now, the half-struggle made sense. He was trying to vampirize her. Good thing that her communicator was on, we'd never have known otherwise, he was using hypnosis to keep them quiet. As soon as I was conscious enough, I started calling over the communicator for him to stop. All I heard then was laughter, and static, as her transmission was abruptly halted.  
  
I raced to get ready and get on my bike. In a matter of minutes, I was there, about two or three minutes before everyone else. We arrived, to find the scene empty of anything, living or undead, though we expected as much. All we really found was a scrap of paper, with a still-et challenge written on it, in blood.  
  
Author's Note: This chapter has been long in coming, I am aware. I have been busy... so very busy... but anyways, I wrote it. This chapter ties in very closely with the next two to come, so stay tuned. My usual disclaimers still apply, so don't even think of bugging me about them. Until next time, ja ne!  
  
~Gryff 


	12. Sonata of Shadow 2 of 3

BowSong: Diary of the Star Archer part 12  
  
Edward's challenge was like a slap in the face. A very major one. It left me a time and a place to finally showdown with the thing I hated most. If there was no way to avoid this, then it would have to be this way, I decided. In two weeks, I show down with what I consider the ultimate evil.  
  
My focused attention for the next few days was on honing my skills, and laying battle strategy. Unfortunately for me, none of the strategies I would normally use could be, as I was unwilling to place any of the other scouts in danger of being attacked by Edward. That left me alone to play the hunter... until the next day, at an emergency meeting.  
  
When we gathered at Rei's temple that night, there was a definite aura of fear coming from everyone assembled. We had no idea what all Edward was capable of, but we all knew well what the other Scouts are capable of, and after explaining some of my fears of vampirism to the others, we now had greater reason to fear, although it was Mitaiyoko who summed it up fairly well.  
  
"You mean to tell me, Gary, that by him having bitten them, he may be able to CONTROL them? This is insane, we can't destroy him and our friends!"  
  
"Mitaiyoko, I was actually anticipating this. Now, if you'll shut up a minute so I can finish explaining my plans, I can tell you how I have planned to deal with this. Now let me explain..."  
  
That was all the further I got before I got this sense of trouble, confirmed by Exor as he came swooping in.  
  
"Ladies, gentlemen, and all those not counted, we have trouble. I sense a lot of dark energy coming into the area, and fast. Transform, we have company!"  
  
After a very hasty transformation, a defensive ring was established by everyone we had with us, and not soon enough. As soon as we were in place, there was a small force rushing our position.  
  
The defensive ring did not hold, as everyone was separated slightly to attack, and then broken apart. The pyrelings, Edward's main cannon fodder, were on us like a swarm of locusts. Fortunately enough for those of us who had weapons, they were almost as easy to tear through as a tender steak. The scouts, though not armed with weapons, had an easy enough time nonetheless. A few minor scratches and cuts were suffered, but the Pyrelings were not the extent of the force. As soon as they were dispatched, the real attack began.  
  
"Mercury Bubbles... BLAST"  
  
No sooner than the command words were said, than a thick mist began to spread across the field, and my suspicions of the taken scouts being enemies were confirmed. I started to call out commands on the battlefield. Leader or not, I still had some experience with combat, and I would be damned if we lost this skirmish due to poor tactics.  
  
"Everyone, be on your guard! There are only 4 rogue scouts, and I'm not sensing any more Pyrelings. That leaves 5 enemy units on the field. Sailor Mars, what can you do about steaming away this mist?"  
  
"I'll see what I can do... Fire Soul!"  
  
The fire burst helped clear most of the field, as we attempted to regroup. As soon as we got back into sight range of each other, we tried to coordinate a bit better, but it didn't work. Venus' Love Me chain whipped through our ranks, sending some people flying, knocking others over, and in general making all of us lose the combat advantage. When we tried to recover, the 4 rogue scouts swooped in, and ran off, and we soon figured out what happened.  
  
Another two scouts were missing. Mars and Aquarius were taken in that last moment of battle. No sooner than we realized this, than Edward's laugh echoed across the field.  
  
"I told you, Misfit, you have no hope of defeating me. I'm simply reminding you of the necessity of my little challenge. I'll add my terms now. If you win, I will release the captive scouts. Lose, and you know what will happen to you, but all of those people you're trying so hard to defend will die again as well. I hope that's incentive enough. Ta."  
  
With that, his laugh echoed again and died out. Our attention turned to those we had left on the field, and decisions of what was to be done.  
  
"Tonight confirms it. We have a very serious issue on our hands. Our enemy is very strong, and we have little hope right now, but we still have hope. Everyone, be as cautious as you can, and try to stay together as much as you can. He can take us as individuals, but as a team we can defeat him with little problem. From here out, personal safety is priority one.."  
  
Mitaiyoko chose this point to interrupt me. "And just why are you telling us this? Why isn't our 'leader' telling us this? Or is that bakabrained Princess of yours too busy crying to take charge? Maybe I should do it for her..."  
  
I snapped, and just walked away from her. I abandoned them for the moment, because I hate infighting, it's the main reason why I never wanted to go to any orphanages, there's more of it than I can handle. I went home, and tried to ignore the outside world. I got some sleep, and that was that.  
  
The next morning, I woke up to someone pounding on my front door. It was Hikari, and she was almost frantic when I finally answered the door. Two more were taken during the night, Haruka and Michiru both, and another note was left at their apartment. It was addressed to me, and there was no mistaking who had written it, or how.  
  
Edward had advanced the time tables. giving me another three days before the showdown. If that is how it was to be, then so be it. I would be ready for him, or I would die in battle. 'This is how these things go,' I figured. 'The hero, the villain, the final confrontation. Man, did I really end up all-out in this superhero shit. The only thing I'm missing is the cute girl in distress.'  
  
As soon as I calmed her down, and she was on her way, I went to prepare, wishing like hell that Rift would show up again soon...  
  
A/N: Okay, okay, I wrote it finally. I know it's been forever and an age, but hey, you get busy sometimes... anyways, usual disclaimers of ownership apply here. Next chapter will be interesting, but I have no idea when the next one is coming. Until that unknown time, ja ne! 


End file.
